Tough lady fights off abduction in Las Piñas

Twenty-eight-year-old Shiela Cruz Lacson was wounded, beaten up and outnumbered.

But she was determined to fight off four assailants, including a woman, when they tried to abduct her last Sunday in Las Piñas City.

Police arrested one of the suspects, identified as Marwin Guinto, 26, married, jobless, and a resident of Morga Street, Tondo, Manila. Guinto’s unidentified companions managed to escape.

Police records showed that the incident happened at around 12:45 p.m. at the parking lot of the SM Southmall located along Alabang-Zapote Road.

The abductors pounced on Lacson, an occupational therapist and a resident of Veraville Classic Talon 1, Las Piñas, when she was about to board her gray Toyota Corolla (TDH 638), case investigator Police Officer 2 Albert Arevalo said. Lacson was supposed to pick up her daughter who was waiting at the mall’s entrance.

Arevalo said the group might only have originally intended to steal Lacson’s car.

Investigation revealed that one of the abductors poked a gun at the victim and forced her inside the car. Lacson was sandwiched between Guinto and his cohort in front of the vehicle, while a woman and another companion sat at the back.

Arevalo said one of the men drove the car out of the parking lot while Guinto held Lacson’s hands together. The female cohort then pulled Lacson’s hair from behind and threatened her.

Lacson reportedly talked back, getting the ire of her captors. One of them hit her with a gun on the left ear.

Lacson pretended to lose consciousness. Minutes later, she suddenly grabbed the wheel and stepped on the car’s accelerator, forcing the vehicle to hit a gutter along the Alabang-Zapote Road.

The surprised suspects got out of her car to escape and left a bleeding Lacson. At this juncture, a mall security guard, who was on his way to work on board a jeepney saw the stalled car and the fleeing suspects.

He immediately got off the passenger jeepney and gave chase.

He collared Guinto, whose shirt was stained with Lacson’s blood, Arevalo said.

The investigator added that Guinto’s group could be a "big time" car theft syndicate that operates in the area.

A few months ago, another mother and daughter escaped from unidentified men who tried to force them out of their car, Arevalo said.

Lacson was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. Arevalo said Guinto refused to cooperate with the authorities.

The suspect is now detained and has been charged with car theft, forcible abduction and physical injuries.